Calif. Assembly narrowly extends climate change bill
By Melody Gutierrez and Kate Galbraith, San Francisco Chronicle
The California Assembly approved sweeping climate-change legislation Tuesday that extends the state’s targets for reducing greenhouse gases from 2020 to 2030 in a controversial bill that saw White House officials and Gov. Jerry Brown privately urging lawmakers for support.
Under SB32, the state would reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030. The bill would piggyback on AB32, theCalifornia Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, which calls for California to reduce greenhouse gases to 1990 levels by 2020. The state is expected to reach that target.
But one of the state’s programs to fight climate change — cap and trade — remains threatened by a legal challenge that has cast uncertainty on its future and has discouraged the carbon credit market. And, on Tuesday, officials revealed that the latest auction, once again, fell short of their hopes.
